C.J. Wilcox

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Pac-10 Season Awards and Snubs

March 7, 2011 in Uncategorized by Themod | 10 comments

by: Griffin Bennett

Today the annual season awards came out which were voted on by the coaches. The coaches are probably the most qualified voters as they watch film on every team all through out the year, but sometimes the votes just don’t add up. They aren’t allowed to vote for their own players which in some cases can cause some sleepers to sneak into the ranks. Who else does Ben Howland vote for the first team All-Pac 10 if he can’t vote for his own players? Here’s a look at the awards and some of my thoughts along with it.

All-Pac 10 Team:

First Team:

  • Matthew Bryan-Amaning – WASH – F – Sr. – 6-9 – 240
  • Jeremy Green – STAN – G – Jr. – 6-4 – 198
  • Jorge Gutierrez – CAL – G – Jr. – 6-3 – 195
  • Tyler Honeycutt – UCLA – F – So. – 6-8 – 183
  • Malcolm Lee – UCLA – G – Jr. – 6-4 – 195
  • Reeves Nelson – UCLA – F – So. – 6-8 – 235
  • Isaiah Thomas – WASH – G – Jr. – 5-9 – 185
  • Klay Thompson – WSU – G – Jr. – 6-6 – 202
  • Nikola Vucevic – USC – F – Jr. – 6-10 – 240
  • Derrick Williams – ARIZ – F – So. – 6-8 – 240

Second Team:

  • DeAngelo Casto – WSU – F – Jr. – 6-8 – 255
  • Joevan Catron – ORE – F – Sr. – 6-6 – 237
  • Jared Cunningham – OSU – G – So. – 6-4 – 182
  • Harper Kamp – CAL – F – Jr. – 6-8 – 245
  • Trent Lockett – ASU – G – So. – 6-4 – 211

Honorable Mention (receiving at least three votes):

  • Ty Abbott (ASU, Sr., G)
  • Allen Crabbe (CAL, Fr., G)
  • Lamont Jones (ARIZ, So., G)
  • Josh Owens (STAN, Jr., F).

What they got wrong:

First off, let me rant about the relatively new 10 person first team squad . The same people who complain about dodge ball and peanut butter being dangerous in schools are the same people who wanted to expand the first team from 5 to 10. Including everyone is boring and now I can’t argue about whether or not Reeves Nelson or MBA is better. I hate all of you, who ever you are. At least release the voting totals so we can know who were the last ones in and in what order.

Anyways, with 10 first team slots it becomes very easy for the coaches to not make any mistakes. With that said, there was one glaring mistake that the coaches made: Malcolm Lee over Joevan Catron. Catron finished 7th in scoring while Lee finished 11th. Catron was the best player on a surprising Oregon squad and scared my much more than Lee did. I’m sure the coaches voted for Lee based on his hype, but Catron got shafted on this one.

Other than that, there is one more that stand out to me. How did Lamont Jones get an honorable mention? He averaged 11.3 points, 2.5 assists, 1.8 rebounds and .8 steals. Were the coaches just looking to award another Wildcat for winning the title? For me, that spot should belong to Justin Holiday. He averaged 10.6 points, 2.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. It’s nit-picky, but Jones was a little bit better than average and Holiday had better defense for most of the year.

Pac-10 All-Freshman Team:

  • Anthony Brown – STAN – G/F – 6-7 – 200
  • Allen Crabbe – CAL – G – 6-4 – 165
  • Maurice Jones – USC – G – 5-7 – 155
  • Dwight Powell – STAN – F – 6-10 – 227
  • Joshua Smith – UCLA – C – 6-10 – 305
  • C.J. Wilcox – WASH – G – 6-5 – 190

Honorable Mention (receiving at least three votes):

  • Jordin Mayes (ARIZ, G)
  • Terrence Ross (WASH, G)

What they got wrong:

Once again, it’s hard to get something wrong when you just randomly add an extra spot to a 5 person team. I’d love to know who were the two players that tied for fifth, assuming that was why there are six spots. I think Wilcox took Ross’ spot based purely on the last 3 games, and that is probably right. This team was pretty much black and white all year.

Pac-10 All-Defensive Team:

  • DeAngelo Casto – WSU – F – Jr. – 6-8 – 255
  • Jared Cunningham – OSU – G – So. – 6-4 – 182
  • Jorge Gutierrez – CAL – G – Jr. – 6-3 – 195
  • Malcolm Lee – UCLA – G – Jr. – 6-4 – 195
  • Marcus Simmons – USC – G – Sr. – 6-6 – 220

Honorable Mention (receiving at least three votes):

  • Matthew Bryan-Amaning (WASH, Sr. F)
  • Kyle Fogg (ARIZ, Jr., G)
  • Justin Holiday (WASH, Sr., F).

What they got wrong:

The defensive team awards are always tough because it’s less stat based than some of the others. I hate to keep picking on him, but Malcolm Lee as an all-defensive first teamer? Did I miss something? MBA should have made the team over Lee, especially because there is only one forward on the list. In the Pac-10, Lee finished 52nd in rebounds per game, 38th in steals per game, and 30th in blocks with 5. I don’t remember him being any type of lock-down defender. A very interesting pick. MBA, on the other hand, finished 4th in rebounds per game, 18th in steals per game, and 2nd in blocks per game. He was a top 3 post defender and should have been on this list. I’m not trying to be a homer, but last I checked rebounds are blocks are defensive statistics.

Pac-10 Player of the Year:

Derrick Williams: Williams becomes the sixth Arizona player to earn Pac-10 Player of the Year, and !rst since 1999, joining Sean Elliott (1988, 1989), Chris Mills (1993), Damon Stoudamire (1995), Mike Bibby (1998), and Jason Terry (1999). Williams led the Wildcats in scoring (18.8 ppg/2nd in Pac-10), !eld goal percentage (.612/1st), and rebounding (8.2 rpg/5th in Pac-10).  He’s posted 20 or more points 13 times this season, and posted 10 double-doubles.  In just two seasons, the 2010 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year has scored 1,070 points, while grabbing 472 rebounds. He’s the fourth sophomore in Pac-10 history to earn Player of the Year honors, joining California’s Jason Kidd (1994), Arizona’s Mike Bibby (1998) and Arizona State’s James Harden (2009).

Notes: Nothing wrong about this one. Williams, and the Wildcats, pulled away from Isaiah Thomas and Klay Thompson down the stretch to walk across the finished line. He was the best player on the best team and I don’t think that there is a single player that you wouldn’t trade for Williams straight up. He did have his ups and downs and his defense was questionable, but he was a force all year. Good call, and an easy pick.

Pac-10 Freshman of the Year:

Allen Crabbe: CRABBE becomes the seventh California player to earn Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, and !rst since 2004, joining Dave Butler (1983), Leonard Taylor (1985), Jason Kidd (1993), Tremaine Fowlkes (1995) Shareef Abdur-Rahim (1996), and Leon Powe (2004).  Crabbe was 14th in the league in scoring (13.0 ppg), fourth in free throw percentage (.824) and sixth in three-point !eld goal percentage (.406), which led all Pac-10 freshmen. His numbers are more impressive in Pac-10 play as he posted 16.4 points per game and 5.8 rebounds per game, while leading the league in three-point !eld goal percentage (.481).

Notes: This award was wrapped up halfway through the season. Crabbe was instantly a starter and was needed for output from a Cal team that lost almost it’s entire team. Maurice Jones and Dwight Powell are nice additions to note, but Crabbe was easily the best freshman due to his opportunity that was given to him. Is he the BEST freshman in the Pac-10? That could certainly be argued heavily.

Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year:

Marcus Simmons: Simmons has been key in leading USC’s defense, allowing a league-leading low of 62.9 points per game overall, and 63.3 ppg in Pac-10 play. He’s been frequently called upon this season to guard the opponent’s top scorer, having limited several All-Pac-10 performers below their shooting percentages – Washington State’s Klay Thompson (12-of-35/.343), Stanford’s Jeremy Green (5-of-22/.228), UCLA’s Tyler Honeycutt (6-of-16/.375), and Washington’s Isaiah Thomas (8-of-20/.400), He’s the second Trojan to earn the honor as Taj Gibson collected the award in 2009.

Notes: Whatever. I’m sure the voting was real close on this one, but I would have probably voted for Cunningham. The stats that the Pac-10 lists for holding those players below their average shooting percentages is kind of laughable as he wasn’t guarding those players the whole game. I could try to make my case for Cunningham based on stats, but it would be like shouting at a wall.

Pac-10 Most Improved Player of the Year:

Matthew Bryan-Amaning: Bryan-Amaning is among the Pac-10 leaders in scoring (16.0 ppg/6th) and rebounding (8.3 rpg/4th) and has posted 10 double-doubles this season. He has appeared in all 30 games, with 26 starts this season.  Bryan-Amaning has steadily improved his numbers each season from 4.2 points/3.2 rebounds as a freshman, to 6.0 points/4.0 rebounds as a sophomore, to 8.8 points/5.9 rebounds in 22.8 minutes of action last season.

Notes: I’m still not sure what the qualifications are for this award. Do Harper Kamp and Josh Owens qualify because they missed all of last season with injuries? Would you compare their ’08/’09 numbers to this years? Are they even eligible for the award. I’ve tried asking around and no one seems to know the answer. If they DID qualify then my vote would be for Kamp. He overcame a terrible injury and made second-team All-Pac 10. If they didn’t qualify then I think the MBA choice is a nice one. Another good candidate would be Jared Cunningham. Can we please get some clarity on this issue?

Pac-10 Coach of the Year:

Sean Miller – Arizona - Miller, 42, has guided ARIZONA to its 12th Pac-10 title, and !rst since 2005, with a 14-4 league mark, 25-6 record overall. Under Miller, the Wildcats put together an eight-game winning streak at one point this season and found themselves back in the Top 25 of both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll for the !rst time since Dec. 31, 2007. Collecting his !rst Pac-10 Coach of the Year honor, he now has earned Coach of the Year honors in on both coasts, having been honored by the Atlantic-10 Conference in 2008. He’s the second Arizona coach to receive Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors, joining Hall of Famer Lute Olson, a seven-time recipient (1986, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1998, and 2003). Miller has a career record of 161-68 (.703), while his Arizona record stands at 41-21 (.661).

Notes: Here’s another award in which it’s qualifications are unclear. Is the coach who over-performed their expectations or is it the coach who won the most games? If it’s the latter then Sean Miller is your guy. The Wildcats were picked to finish second in the pre-season and ended up winning the league. He had the best player in the league and some average-to-good role players. In my opinion, the coach of the year was Cal’s Mike Montgomery. After winning the Pac-10 last year, Cal lost 4 of their starters and almost the entirety of their offense. Somehow the Bears finished tied for 4th place with a 10-8 record in the league. That is an impressive accomplishment and I think Montgomery got hosed.

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The Analytical Line-Up

December 14, 2010 in Uncategorized by Themod | 26 comments

by: Griffin Bennett

We all have our favorite line-ups. Some want to see more Wilcox and less Gant. Some want to see more Venoy and less Gaddy. Some even get more specific and never want to see Venoy and Isaiah on the court at the same time. The right answer is that there is no right answer. So much depends on the opponent, style of play, score, defense, etc. Especially on a deep team like the Huskies, you can end up hurting your team by trying too many different line ups and not letting the players gel on the court. For the sake of argument, here’s a look at the who the statistics say should be playing the most.

Qualifications:

I fall in love with kenpom.com all over again every year. It breaks down players and teams better than any other site. Using these stats, I’ll try to determine what would be the most effective line-ups and who should be sitting at the end of the bench. Keep in mind that this is based entirely off of efficiency stats and doesn’t take leadership, motivation, experience, and basically any intangibles into account. WARNING: The nerd level of this post may be too high for some readers.

Click here to get an explanation on the stats that I will be referencing. Like most stats, some people love them while others hates them.

Starters:

PG: Abdul Gaddy – His offensive rating (ORtg) is the second highest on the team at 134.3. That’s a good enough rate to be 23rd most efficient and effective scorer in basketball. If the Huskies want to score, Gaddy needs to get his looks. His assist rate (ARate) is 24.3 while his turnover rate (TORate) is 18.7. Those numbers are good enough to warrant starting point guard time on a contender.

SG: C.J. Wilcox – He is the most effective offensive player on the team so far with a ORtg of 139.6. To qualify for Kenpom.com’s national leaders list, you have to play 40% of your team’s total minutes. Wilcox is currently playing 38.3%. The highest ORtg in the nation is posted by UConn’s Kemba Walker. His rating? 139.6. If Wilcox gains 1.7% more minutes he will be tied for the highest ORtg in the nation! How is this man not starting, or at least playing more minutes! When he’s on the floor he’s taking 25.9% of the team’s shots which is highest on the team. He has the highest effective field goal percentage (eFG%) on the team as well. Can we get the man some more minutes?

SF: Justin Holiday – Posting an impressive 130.4 ORtg, which is good for 47th in the nation, he has been everyone’s MVP so far. Outside of Gaddy and Wilcox, he has the best offensive shooting numbers on the team. Not only does he rate high in shooting, but his defense and rebounding guarantee him a starting spot. his offensive and defensive rebounding % (OR% and DR%) are an impressive 10.0% and 15.9% respectively. Match that with a low TORate of 15.1 and a high steal percentage (Stl%) of 4.0 you can see why he needs to be on the floor as a great all-around player.

PF: Matthew Bryan-Amaning – The stats like him! I never would have guessed. He posts an surprisingly high ORtg of 111.8 but that’s not even the best he has to offer. I know it sounds crazy, but he posts decent numbers in OR% and DR% at 12.5% and 15.0%. BUT WAIT, THERE’s MORE! He has a block percentage (Blk%) of 4.7 and a Stl% of 2.8 which aren’t terrible either. While none of these are chart-topping, he plays an effective game in post.

C: Aziz N’Diaye – If it weren’t for Wilcox, here is your statistical MVP. Aziz posts a impressive 19.1 OR% as well as a 23.4 DR%. Like Wilcox, he plays only 38.3% total minutes, but if he could qualify nationally, he would rank 10th in OR% and 88th in DR%. He also is the team leader in Blk% at 8.3 as well as an astounding free-throw rate of 110.7. He does have his drawbacks, though. He has a high TORate of 19.8 but his fouls committed per 40 minutes (FC/40) is a rediculous 7.8, which is a team high.

Bench: (in order of effectiveness)

1. Isaiah Thomas – His ORtg is the third lowest on the team at 111.2. That’s not good. He does everything at a below average rate and nothing jumps off of the page at you. His most effective stats are his FC/40 at a team low of 1.8 and his fouls drawn per 40 minutes (FD/40) at a team high 6.8 which is good for 76th nationally. That’s about it.

2. Venoy Overton – While his ORtg is slightly better than IT’s at 111.6, his passing numbers aren’t very good either. He leads the team in ARate at 26.8 but he also leads the team in TORate at 22.1. He is sink or swim and too risky to be the starter at point for this team. Luckily, his Stl% is 4.9 which is a team high as well as 39th in the nation.

3. Scott Suggs – After Wilcox, Gaddy, and Holiday, Suggs posts the fourth highest ORtg of 126.5. He posts decent OR% and DR% of 8.0 and 6.8 respectively, but that’s about it for Scott.

4. Terrence Ross – An ORtg of 120.4 isn’t terrible, but only average. He also posts decent OR% and DR% for a guard at 6.9 and 12.2 respectively. Not much more stands out for Ross, either.

5. Darnell Gant – The man is the obvious choice for least effective player. He has a team low 102.7 ORtg with terrible OR% and DR% for a forward at 5.3 and 10.1 respectively. He’s shooting a team high .613 three-point percentage, but he’s only attempted 13 total. He’s also second worst in TORate at 21.8. I was shocked at how bad his numbers looked.

In Review:

I’m not sure what we can actually take away from this other than maybe some adjustment of minutes. Although Romar will never start this line-up, I want to see if these starting five are ever on the court together. I know that I will be keeping my eye out for it to see if it is effective at all. I think Gaddy and Wilcox need to be playing more minutes. There efficiencies are too high to not be getting more. Aziz, on the other hand, can’t stay on the court long enough to gather enough minutes. His comical 7.8 fouls per 40 minutes needs to lower if wants to play starting minutes.

I know Isaiah doesn’t play a “stat friendly” style of play, but it’s interesting to see how he compares. His ORtg has actually increased from last year from 107.7 to 111.2. I personally don’t think that IT should not start because his intangibles as a leader are so important to this team’s success. With all of the line-up talk, I figured I would make a post about it. Make your own conclusions and maybe use some of this information in your decisions.

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Quick Opinion: Redshirting C.J. Is Another Example of Romar’s Faith in Breshers

November 10, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 2 comments

Ryan Petitt / UDubSports.com

Ryan Petitt / UDubSports.com

Coach Lorenzo Romar may have gotten all the proof he needed, during last week’s exhibition game as Tyreese Breshers was dazzling the arena, that this year’s team may be a lot more similar to last season’s squad than originally envisioned.

Today’s decision to redshirt freshman C.J. Wilcox, universally proclaimed by coaches and teammates to be the Huskies’ “best shooter,” seemed like an odd move to me at first. We’re just not deep enough with shooters for C.J. to be expendable. Not if we’re a team that, having lost its best forward, will rely much more heavily on its strong backcourt for production.

But, then it clicked. Maybe in Coach’s ideal vision, we’re not going to play all that differently from last year. And, if we’re going to rely heavily on our inside game, who’s going to lead that charge? Do we trust MBA yet? Not completely. At least, I don’t.

I kept hearing voices mention Tyreese Breshers. There were hints on media day. Heck, Jon Brockman even said it to me.  And more recently statements by Coach Romar that a starting role may be in line once he’s healthy enough to run 20-25 minutes per game.

A lot more is being expected of Breshers, once he’s finally healthy, than I’d anticipated coming into this season. And, if he can live up to these expectations, and we can get some major production in the paint, then we can get by with one sharpshooter on the roster, with Elston Turner playing the role of gunner-off-the-bench. This allows C.J. to be a part of Husky basketball until 2014, and helps ease some of the crowding in the Husky backcourt.

Of course, Breshers needs to get fully healthy. If Coach too often needs to move Quincy Pondexter down low to the “4″ spot just to firm up a weakness in rebounding, or the lack of a low-post scoring threat, I think there will be nights we miss C.J. too much to make the move worth it.

But, if Tyreese can live up to the growing cacophony of whispers, and be that main presence in the paint, this years’ Dawgs might resemble last years’ more than we ever expected.

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Boom!: Video of Sick Clarence Trent Dunk vs. Central

November 5, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 4 comments

I knew this would show up somewhere — the school was videotaping the game last night, even though it wasn’t on television.

Here’s a link to the SICK dunk by Clarence Trent off a lob by C.J. Wilcox.

Thanks for coming!

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Elston Turner Talks to Montlake Madness About Having a Coach at School, and a Coach at Home

October 27, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 1 comment

Elston Trey copyWhen you look at all of the scoring the Huskies will have to make up for this season when accounting for the losses of Jon Brockman and Justin Dentmon (approximately 37% of last season’s points), it’s going to take more than small increases from several returning players to bridge the gap. One guy Montlake Madness is looking to for a greatly increased role in the offense this season is Elston Turner.

Turner had more ups and downs than the average freshman last year. He averaged 17 minutes per game as a key scoring option off the bench early on, before an ankle injury caused him to miss four games. When he returned, his scoring touch was there, but his minutes went way down. Then, in the NCAA Tournament, Elston Turner averaged 20 minutes per contest, showing off a more well-rounded game and raising expectations for this season.

I had a chance to speak with Turner recently. Here’s what we discussed:

Montlake Madness: What’s new? What part of your game have you been working on this off-season?

Elston Turner: You’re gonna see how much more I’m gonna be aggressive. Not just being a three-point shooter, but getting to the foul line, going to the basket, a lot of mid-range. You know, that’s 80-85% of the main things I’ve worked on this summer: being more aggressive and not just settling for the three-point jumper.

MM: How much do the increased minutes you saw very late last year in the NCAA Tournament bolster your confidence coming into this year?

ET: It helps a good deal. Going into the tournament, my dad was talking about how I have to be more aggressive, and if I have an open shot, don’t pass it up. And, if I feel like I can do something with the ball, then go ahead and do it. And, I started to do it in the Tournament and a lot of people could see it then.

MM: What’s it like having a coach at home (NBA coach, Elston Turner, Sr.) and a coach at school? Any discrepancy between the advice that they suggest to you?

ET: No, not really, because they talk all the time. They played in the NBA together. They both know what’s the best thing for me. When they both tell me one thing, it’s likely right. So, I haven’t had a problem with that yet.

MM: What’s the path from here to a professional career for you? What do you need to develop?

ET: Being more aggressive. Having more people notice me. Doing little things. Not just being an offensive player, but also playing defense and rebounding. Getting to the ball, stuff like that. Just so I can stay on the court and have more people notice me.

MM: What’s the battle like for rotation spots at practice? How do you work that out with being friends off the court? You and C.J. (Wilcox) particularly?

ET: You really don’t think about it as a player. Like you said, we’re real good friends. (C.J. and I) are roommates. We hang out a lot. And, I mean, really we’re just encouraging each other, so whoever gets the minutes, we’re not gonna be mad. We’re gonna be encouraging. I’m just trying to tell him a little bit about the offense. Because, I’ve been through it last year. I’m just trying to help him out and have him be the best player he can be.

MM: Would you rather start or finish?

ET: I’d rather finish.

Hey, thanks for coming.

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Flu-sday Night Links: Injuries, Illnesses, and Terrence Jones Cuts His List to Five

October 20, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 7 comments

injury logo 1 copyI’m sure many of you have read elswhere that more than half of the Husky hoops team has battled the flu over the past week, and therefore the team hasn’t had a full practice yet. So, I won’t belabor the point except to point out that this could be that very rare instance when having a close knit team actually produces a negative repercussion. (Guys get sick, and because they spend so much time together, they pass the flu along.)

You can read all about it from Percy Allen, along with a report on today’s practice (with more props for C.J. Wilcox’s shooting) here. I still say there’s not a chance this guy redshirts, but we’ll see in a few weeks.

And, we’re not the only Pac-10 team ailing:

ASU guard Ty Abbott will miss the beginning of the season.

Stanford lost freshman forward Andy Brown for the entire season.

And, UCLA has five injured players right now, including their likely starting backcourt: Jerime Anderson (groin injury) and Malcolm Lee (concussion).

And, Terrence Jones cut his list of schools down to five today, erasing Arizona and Kansas. He told me earlier this week that his trip to UW went well, and that (despite the looks of it) he did indeed enjoy the Midnight Madness celebration. The schools remaining in play for TJ are UW, UCLA, Oregon, Oklahoma and Kentucky.

Thanks for coming! (And best of luck to all of the Dawgs and other injured Pac-10 players for speedy recoveries!)

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Montlake Madness Talks to Husky Freshman Guard, C.J. Wilcox

October 19, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 2 comments

CJ shootingC.J. Wilcox’s reputation as a terrific shooter precedes him even before playing a game as a Husky. He’s being called the team’s best shooter by some (although Elston Turner might have something to say about that). And, Wilcox won this weekend’s three-point contest, teaming with a UW student to defeat Elston Turner and his partner.

Some of you have asked about the possibility of C.J. redshirting this season. For what it’s worth, I don’t think it’s very likely with only a 12-man team. What seems like a deep rotation, that will be difficult to break into, could become dangerously thin with an injury or two. Here’s what we discussed:

Montlake Madness: Everyone talks about your shooting. What aspect of your game are people missing? What should they be talking about?

C.J. Wilcox: They could also talk about my quickness, I guess. My agility. Stuff like that. But, mostly it’s my shooting. That’s what I spend most of my time on, is my shooting.

MM: Does there come a point where you know you’re a good shooter so you work on other things more? How do you decide to mix between polishing your strengths and working on the things you need to improve on?

C.J.: I’ll do the same shooting every day. I’ll do other stuff. I mean, I’ll do ball-handling. Of course, weights and stuff. But, I never miss a shooting practice. If you can shoot, you can play anywhere you want to.

MM: What don’t we know about you?

C.J.: I play guitar. A lot of people don’t know that.

MM: What kind of music do you play?

C.J. Just anything that sounds good, really.

MM: Who’s your favorite guitarist?

C.J.: I’d probably have to say, Jimi Hendrix.

MM: What’s been unexpected so far about your experience at UW?

C.J.: I guess it’s the transition. The physical part of playing. Playing with people as fast as you. Jumping as high. Everything like that. It’s just an adjustment, the whole thing.

MM: How’s the adjustment to Seattle been, being away from home?

C.J.: I came in the summer, so I kinda got used to being away from home. So, right now, it’s not that big of a deal. But early in the summer, I kinda missed home. But, now I can wait, so. . .

MM: Do you guys get to go home at all during the season?

C.J.: I know we go home at Christmas, but that’s the only time I can think of.

Thanks for coming.

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Video Fun From Midnight Madness: Slam Dunk Contest and Pre-Event Warmup

October 17, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 12 comments

Quincy Dunking at MMadness copy If you haven’t read it yet, here’s the post with my impressions of yesterday’s Midnight Madness event — focusing mostly on the 10-minute team scrimmage.

Wanted to share some video I took before and during the event. I had a great time, and wanted to give anyone who wasn’t there a little taste of what went down, and give even those of you who were there a little look behind-the-scenes.

Here are a few videos (mostly dunks) of the team warming up while they waited for the UW/UCLA volleyball game to end:

Watch the background of this video for a nice slam by Abdul Gaddy.

A series of dunks and dunk attempts.

A little shooting contest between Matthew Bryan-Amaning and Scott Suggs.

More pre-event warmups.

A couple of nice dunks by MBA.

And, here’s a windmill dunk by Tyreese Breshers, who didn’t participate in the Slam Dunk contest.

Slam Dunk Contest:

Here’s one long clip from the Dunk Contest.

Thanks for coming!

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PurpleDawgs Crush GoldDawgs at UW Basketball’s Midnight Madness Event

October 17, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 5 comments

MMadness on ESPNIn the fan’s first look at this season’s UW Husky Basketball Team, the PurpleDawgs defeated the GoldDawgs, 35-20, at Bank of America Arena on Friday night.

The Basics:

The PurpleDawgs team consisted of Abdul Gaddy, Quincy Pondexter, Darnell Gant, Tyreese Breshers, Elston Turner, and C.J. Wilcox.

The GoldDawgs Team consisted of Scott Suggs, Venoy Overton, Isaiah Thomas, Matthew Bryan-Amaning, and Clarence Trent.

Hec Ed was crowded, but not full. Our women’s volleyball team is very, very talented. Anytime you have the opportunity to see the 3rd-ranked team in any sport, it’s worth the time.

The scrimmage was only 10 minutes long, played with a running clock that only stopped for free throws.

Here’s an (unofficial) box score I put together based on my notes, and consulting a couple of other stories, all which seem to disagree on the scoring:

MMadness Boxscore copy

Impressions and Extras:

Poised Purple and Go-go-Gold: Not sure how the teams were chosen, but there was a clear contrast in styles between the PurpleDawgs poised, structured attack, and the run-and-gun effort by the GoldDawgs. The more controlled team won, but the lopsided-ness was due mostly to the best guy on the court playing for the PurpleDawgs.

Elston Turner: Sure, it was only a scrimmage, but Elston Turner looks good. Real good. Turner, Gaddy and Pondexter kept the ball moving at midseason form, finding the open man and taking advantage of Elston’s hot shooting (he went either 5-6 or 5-7 from the field, with three three-pointers). Based on the small hints Coach Romar gave during his Media Day press conference, I have to believe Elston Turner may contend for a starting role on this team (likely with two smaller guards, Quincy Pondexter, and one traditional big man).

The Venoy/Gaddy Matchup: This was the marquee one-on-one battle of the evening, and, if only for the final score, the slight edge goes to Abdul Gaddy tonight. Venoy had one nice steal which started a fast break, ending with a redonkulous dunk by Clarence Trent. Otherwise, though, Abdul controlled the tempo and was able to run the offense despite Venoy’s pesky D.

Gaddy had one jaw-dropping, thread-the-needle pass out of traffic from right under the basket to a wide-open Quincy Pondexter.

Clarence Trent: Trent is very active, but doesn’t look as big as I’d expected. Maybe it’s seeing him next to Breshers, Gant and MBA that’s throwing me off. Time will tell, but his frame, and his game, are reading more to me like a small forward’s than a big man’s.

Scott Suggs: I’m hoping we’ll get early evidence that Scott Suggs is going to be more aggressive and take control of whatever minutes he’s given on the court. It didn’t happen tonight, but hopefully tomorrow when real practices begin, a terrific sophomore year will start to take shape for Suggs.

Justin Holiday: Justin didn’t compete in the scrimmage, the dunk contest, or the three-point shootout, as he’s still recovering from hernia surgery. However, I did see him warming up in the gym before the event, and he’s moving pretty well.

Overheard after Tyreese Breshers missed two free throws: “Maybe he’s taking those Jon Brockman comparisons too far.”

The Dunk Contest: Isaiah took the slam dunk event, despite some tough competition from MBA and Venoy. According to Assistant Coach, Raphael Chillious, this was the first time he’d ever seen Clarence Trent lose a dunk contest.

The Three-Point Shootout: C.J. Wilcox defeated Elston Turner, but each was paired with a UW student as a teammate. I watched C.J. shoot for a bit in the gym beforehand, and his form is just so consistent. It’ll be interesting to see whether he can create his own shot this season though, or whether he’ll need some seasoning before he can show off his stellar form consistently in games.

ESPN2′s coverage: ESPN2 did a couple of minutes on the program as part of their 30-minute Midnight Madness show. They highlighted Coach Romar, (calling him a “rising star”) and the Huskies perimeter players. ESPNU isn’t available in my area, so I have no idea how much of the two-hour show was devoted to the Dawgs.

Coach Chillious on what ESPN choosing UW for its Midnight Madness program means to the team: “I think what it does is validate the successful season we had last year. And, hopefully, it gives us momentum moving forward. We know that’s not what’s going to make us a good team. And, y’know, the rest of the nation doesn’t get to see the teams in the Pacific Northwest that often, so this is just a jumpstart.”

Terrence Jones and Tony Wroten: Both stud recruits were there. Jones was on his official visit and sat on the Husky bench. He didn’t look too enthused, but I’m not going to read much into the facial expressions of a 17-year-old kid.

Real Practice Starts Saturday at 1 PM: With 31 days until the regular season opener at home against Wright State, the Huskies get back to full practices tomorrow afternoon.

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Montlake Madness Conjectures on the Starting Lineup and Nine-Man Rotation

September 29, 2009 in Uncategorized by Themod | 12 comments

In recent days, Coach Romar has begun to reveal what his lineup may look like during the upcoming season. Here are some of the clues he’s given through interviews:

  • He said that Isaiah Thomas, Quincy Pondexter, and Darnell Gant would all start for the Huskies at the beginning of the upcoming season, as each did on last year’s Pac-10 championship squad.
  • Coach LoRo has also said that whichever point guard (between Abdul Gaddy and Venoy Overton) does not start will be “like a starter,” since he’ll often opt to finish games with a three-guard lineup.
  • Finally, coach has said before that it’s likely he’ll exercise a nine-man rotation again this year, which will leave three Huskies scrapping for extra minutes during blowouts, and times of foul trouble or injury.

Here’s the lineup I think Coach will use to start the season, along with the role players coming off the bench, and our explanations for each pick. You’ll notice that we’re not listing the guys in order of playing time, since there are too many unknowable factors that will go into that. We’re picking starters, role-players, and reserves.

The Starters:

aa starters copy

F/C – Matthew Bryan-Amaning

Why he should start: No one’s been a victim of higher expectations than MBA during the first two seasons of his college career, and it seems like he’s just now prepared to start making those flashes of brilliance a more regular occurrence at Hec Ed.

Why he shouldn’t: We’re being a little unfair here, given his injuries last year, but if MBA couldn’t consistently maintain a high level of intensity in about 17 minutes-per-game last year, what makes us think he can do it now for 25-30 mpg?

F – Darnell Gant

Why he should start: Because he plays solid defense, shares the ball, and hustles whenever he’s on the court. And, word out of Montlake is that Gant put on a bunch of muscle and is ready to be more of a presence near the rim on both sides of the ball this year.

Why he shouldn’t start: Because he had the worst assist-to-turnover ratio (1/2.2) of any regular player last season and shot just under 37% from the field, meaning defenders could sag off of him and clog the lane.

F – Quincy Pondexter

Why he should start: We finally saw the Quincy Pondexter we’d been waiting for during the last part of 2008/09, when Q-Pon developed into a scorer by forcing himself into the lane and getting high percentage looks at the basket, or getting himself fouled. An underrated rebounder, there’s an outside chance he could challenge for the Pac-10 lead in boards.

Why he shouldn’t start: It’s not worth struggling to come up with a reason just for the sake of writing something here.

G – Isaiah Thomas

Why he should start: I.T. is going to be the most exciting player on the court this year wherever he goes, and if he doesn’t lead the team in scoring, it will mean something’s gone horribly wrong. He’s the Husky capable of throwing a 50-spot up on the scoreboard, or laying the ball in despite a lane filled with a guy like Jarvis Varnado, or Hakeem Olajuwon, or Shaq. . . or all three.

Why he shouldn’t start: Again, he should and he will. Not much more to offer here.

G – Abdul Gaddy

Why he should start: Because the word on Gaddy is that he’s one of the best pure point guards in the world right now, and that he’s a guy who makes the game come more easily to everyone around him. Unless he gets some form of the freshman yips, and isn’t as poised or polished in reality as by reputation, the Huskies will benefit from having a true quarterback on the floor.

Why he shouldn’t start: Because for a team with aspirations of a run through the NCAA Tournament, any growing pains at all for Gaddy could result in loses that would severely hamper our seeding come March.

The Role Players:

aa reserves copy

Venoy Overton – Sixth Man

Why this role is right for him: Because Venoy was our game-changer last season, and there’s no way to quantify the energy boost he gave the team every time he stepped on the floor. It’s valid to wonder whether fouls and turnovers would go up, and the manic energy would go down, if Venoy saw 7-8 more minutes per game (last year he averaged about 20).

Dissenting opinion: Venoy is the team’s nerve center — at times, our heart and soul. Is there ever a time we don’t want his energy on the court? And, are we selling short the idea that Overton can grow as a playmaker too, using his two years of Pac-10 experience to make the battle for the starting point guard spot an absolute dawgfight?

Justin Holiday – Defensive Stopper

Why this role is right for him: Because we need someone we can bring onto the floor to ice the other team’s hot hand. With his length and speed, smaller point guards (common in the Pac-10) and huge post men (not so common in the Pac-10) are the only players Holiday will have difficulty shutting down.

Dissenting opinion: We’re a defensive-minded team, and that should be a strength regardless of the mix on the floor. Additional minutes for a shooter (like Wilcox) or a post player (Trent) may be more critical for the team than another defensive-minded sub.

Elston Turner – Marksman

Why this role is right for him: With some consistent playing time (after last season’s ankle injury Turner’s minutes-per-game dropped from 19 to 11), and a year under his belt, I’d be very surprised if Turner didn’t raise his three-point accuracy into the 40% range (from about 37% last season). He does everything well enough not to hurt us when he’s on the floor, and until someone proves differently in real game action, Turner is the option here.

Dissenting opinion: It’s hard to ignore the early whispers out of practice: that C.J. Wilcox is the team’s best shooter. If Turner doesn’t make the most out of his minutes early, Wilcox could begin to eat into his court time.

Tyreese Breshers – Reserve Big Man

Why this role is right for him: Because there are going to be games when (gasp) the Huskies are getting out-rebounded and the ghost of Jon Brockman looms large over this club. When the gameplan isn’t going our way, or our bigs are in foul trouble, Big Ty is going to be the man who gets the call.

Dissenting Opinion: Breshers was a medical redshirt last season and is just getting back to full-speed workouts. With Breshers off of a year-long injury, it’s entirely possible that Clarence Trent, who has impressed with his hustle thus far, could sneak into this role as well.

The Reserves:

aa bench copyScott Suggs, Clarence Trent, C.J. Wilcox – Bench Guys

Why this role is right for them: Trent and Wilcox are freshmen, and provided neither of them cracks the regular rotation, they’ll have the chance next year. Trent can set his sights on earning minutes vacated when Quincy Pondexter graduates, and Wilcox can bulk up and keep working on his sweet shot. Suggs is the odd man out here, still struggling in a crowded backcourt to distinguish himself.

Dissenting Opinion: It may be impossible to keep Wilcox off the court if he turns out to be a more athletic version of Ryan Appleby and truly is the team’s best shooter. The tools are there, and Trent could easily step into the backup big man role, or even a starting spot, if he can rebound well, play defense, and add an offensive element to the team that Darnell Gant doesn’t. It’s starting to sound like a familiar refrain, but Scott Suggs was Missouri’s best high school baller before he came to UW. I wouldn’t be shocked if Suggs shocks us and improves by leaps and bounds, forcing himself into the discussion.

So, that’s the lineup I think we will go with, and should go with. What do you think? Please do offer up your opinions in our comments section. We love to hear from you!

***

Finally, an announcement came yesterday from UW that a “Midnight Madness” style preseason event will be taking place on October 16th, at about 7:30 PM. A dunk contest and scrimmage are on tap, and you can bet we’ll be there soaking in every second of it.

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